Events

This is a hybrid meeting;

• Join us in person at Knox Presbyterian Church (Lisgar & Elgin) in Geneva Hall.  Please use the Garden Entrance on Elgin Street. Limited free street parking is available on Saturdays, and the City Hall Parking Garage is available for $2.00.
• Join online by registering here.

Tips For Genetic Genealogy DNA Research / 9 a.m. EST

Presenter: Shirley Marshall Monkhouse 

This presentation will provide ten top tips and a method to organize your genetic genealogy DNA research. By working your way through the tips and process, you will reduce time and effort in future analysis and have a better understanding for your family history research and your DNA results. This is an updated and revised version of a presentation given in 2017. There will also be information for those with Irish DNA and a detailed handout provided. This talk will be a benefit to everyone doing family history research as well as those with DNA results.

There was a shot; after that everything is confusing / 10 a.m.

Presenter: Shirley Marshall Monkhouse

Just a short walk outside a small town on the border of Co. Wexford and Co. Carlow in Ireland, near the shore of the lovely Slanny River, on a market day 18 June 1831, a musket shot was heard. After that everything is confusing. This event is referred to as “The Battle of the Pound.'' After Shirley first learned about the “Newtown Barry Affray '' in 2016, it has taken time to untangle the story and to understand the complex back history and the long-lasting outcome. When she used the genealogical concept of “Context” research the story became clearer and easier to understand, as part of Irish history and family research.

Since a family reunion in 1967, Canada’s Centennial year, Shirley Marshall Monkhouse has been interested in learning about all her Irish ancestors. She grew up listening to her father explain family trees to visitors in the farmhouse built by her great-grandfather near Carp Ontario, and located within 50 km of all of her pioneer ancestors' farms in the Ottawa Valley. All thirty-two of the 3rd great-grandparents were “Born in Ireland,” paternal from Leinster in the Republic of Ireland and maternal from Ulster of Northern Ireland. Shirley took her first of many DNA tests in 2015, manages DNA kits for others, and is a project manager for the Rothwell & Rathwell Surname Project at FamilyTreeDNA. She has taken week-long courses and online studies in genetic genealogy and has given presentations to the BIFHSGO  DNA Special Interest Group. 

Shirley and her husband, Duncan, are both working on extending their family trees, and have travelled to do research at repositories and visit homelands in both England and Ireland.

Irish Family History Research Day

25 March 2023 / 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. (Doors open at 8:15 a.m.)

The Chamber, Ben Franklin Place, 101 Centrepointe Dr., Ottawa, Ontario. 

This is an in-person event only.

We welcome Fintan Mullan and Gillian Hunt from the Ulster Historical Foundation (UHF). If you have ancestors who came from Ireland, whether they were Catholics, Protestants, Gaelic, Celtic, Ulster-Scots (Scots-Irish), Famine Immigrants or of other origins, this outstanding seminar is a must! Improve your research skills and understanding of the resources that are available and increase your knowledge of the historical context of your ancestors’ lives. We are particularly fortunate to have eminent and experienced speakers from one of the leading heritage societies specializing in Irish genealogy.

Come out to meet the Fintan and Gillian and have an opportunity to chat with them about your Irish research and purchase their books—books that are, in some cases, hard to find in Canada.

For more information and tickets, go to the Irish Family History Research Day page.

Non-members, $40
BIFHSGO members: $30 (2023 BIFHSGO members need to be logged in to access the members' tickets.)

This is a hybrid meeting;

• Join us in person at Knox Presbyterian Church (Lisgar & Elgin) in Geneva Hall.  Please use the Garden Entrance on Elgin Street. Limited free street parking is available on Saturdays, and the City Hall Parking Garage is available for $2.00.
• Join online by registering here.

Practical Tips for Repair and Care of Family Treasures / 9 a.m. EDT

Presenter: Kyla Ubbink 

Pick up some handy and practical methods that ensure the longevity of your family collections. A brief review of archival enclosure and housing options provides a guideline for storage; while methods for basic cleaning, deacidification, and dealing with mould and musty odours present some of the tools needed for artifact care. Whether your collections consist of documents, photographs, artwork, or heirlooms, applying archival principles in your home safeguards their preservation for future generations.

Operating a private conservation studio since 2002, Kyla Ubbink began her career through an internship with the Library and Archives Canada’s conservation laboratories in 2000 and subsequent contract positions through to 2005. Her private practice, Ubbink Book & Paper Conservation, provides professional conservation, restoration and preservation consultation services to institutions, galleries, antiquities dealers, collectors, researchers and genealogists. As an advocate for her field, Mrs. Ubbink taught Cultural Preservation for Algonquin College’s Archives and Records Management Program, has several publications in professional periodicals, is a regular presenter at conferences, and provides workshops and lectures for community groups and heritage professionals. Ms. Ubbink served on a Canadian Standards Review Board to assess and update the standard for “Permanence of Paper for Records, Books and Other Documents,” and fulfilled the role of treasurer and secretary for the Canadian Association for Conservation of Cultural Property’s Board of Directors. www.bookandpaperonservation.com

Canadians on Vimy Ridge, April 1917: Resources and Research / 10 a.m. EDT

Presenter: Glenn Wright 

It has been more than one hundred years since Canadian troops captured Vimy Ridge on Easter weekend 1917, a victory that resonates with Canadians to this day. In this presentation, we will review the common and not-so-common resources for researching and documenting your ancestor and his role in what was one of the most significant battles of the First World War.

Glenn Wright is a frequent speaker at family history and genealogical meetings throughout Ontario and beyond, his primary interest being the Canadian men and women who have served in our wars. He is a Past President of BIFHSGO.

Ottawa Public Library Genealogy Day

All day in-person / Ben Franklin Place

Joint presentation of Ottawa Public Library, Ottawa Branch of Ontario Ancestors and BIFHSGO

Details to follow...

This is a hybrid meeting;

• Join us in person at Knox Presbyterian Church (Lisgar & Elgin) in Geneva Hall.  Please use the Garden Entrance on Elgin Street. Limited free street parking is available on Saturdays, and the City Hall Parking Garage is available for $2.00.
• Join online by registering here.

Zotero - Reasons Why You Need It While Doing Your Family History Research / 9 a.m. EDT

Presenter: Dena Palamedes 

Whether you are a pro at citations or you struggle to cite your sources at a minimal level, Zotero is the perfect tool for genealogists.

1. Zotero is free.
2. It's an easy and quick way to organize your research.
3. You can sync across devices.
4. You can share your research.
5. It makes citation so much easier!

Dena will provide an overview of Zotero and its power so you can cite like a pro!

Dena Palamedes has been exploring the joys of genealogy, a passion that draws on her skills acquired as an auditor for over a decade.  She loves to leverage the power of technology at work, in family history and through her photography.  Now retired from the federal government, she has more opportunities for genealogy, travel adventures, and new friends.

New Netherland Roots of Canadians

Presenter: Brian Laurie-Beaumont

Despite all the attention on the Pilgrims and Plymouth Colony, many Canadians have roots in a contemporary competitor, the Dutch colony of New Netherlands. Using his wife's ancestry as an example—they were farming along Wall Street before the Pilgrims set foot on Plymouth Rock—Brian covers the early history of New Netherland from Dutch trading posts at the start of the 17th century and indigenous relations, to competition with English settlers and eventual defeat in 1665, and their integration by 1700; traces of that presence over 400 years later; and the resources available for genealogical research. Some of your early ancestors from New York may turn out to be not English after all.

Brian Laurie-Beaumont has an Honours Degree in history and political science from Carleton along with post-graduate work in International Affairs. After a 40-year career in museum facility development planning, genealogical research was a natural transition—a chance to live history through our ancestors. He is a member of the British Colonial America SIG and has given presentations on his research at BIFHSGO, The Great Canadian Genealogy Conference, and other genealogy groups. His focus is on Britain, Colonial America, and using DNA as a tool to solve brick walls.

This is a hybrid meeting;

• Join us in person at Knox Presbyterian Church (Lisgar & Elgin) in Geneva Hall.  Please use the Garden Entrance on Elgin Street. Limited free street parking is available on Saturdays, and the City Hall Parking Garage is available for $2.00.
• Join online by registering here

Annual General Meeting / 9 a.m. EDT

Details to follow

Great Moments in Genealogy / 10 a.m. EDT

Introducing the Cripwells

This rare and unusual surname has its origins in southern Nottinghamshire and dates back to the mid 16th Century. This is as far back as Church of England Records go. This presentation traces the descendants from the earliest Cripwell’s to the presenter. A second portion covers the spread of this surname throughout England and overseas.

Paul Cripwell was born in England in 1952 and emigrated with his family in 1953, and has lived in Ottawa ever since. His closest family in England includes only two cousins, with whom he keeps in touch. He retired in 2018 from NavCanada and began his family history research. This retirement project has proved to be everything he needs to keep him busy. It includes complex problem-solving and a truly never-ending project! Paul has used his data analytics skills to tease tidbits of knowledge from the many sources available.

Message from the Grave: Desperately Seeking Charity Gero

Charity Gero was Jane’s 6th great-aunt, and her biggest brick wall. Jane will outline the highlights of her search.

Jane Simpson has been researching her Revolutionary ancestors in Westchester County, New York for almost a decade. Great Aunt Charity has been most elusive. Jane was born in Belleville, Ontario and is editor of the Searchlight Newsletter for the Quinte Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society.  She is a retired Registered Nurse, living in Kanata and is a member of BIFHSGO, participating in the British Colonial American SIG. Her book Shades of Allegiance: The Experiences of the Gerow Family of PEC in the American Revolution will be printed soon and Soldier, Settler, Sinner: The Remarkable Journey of Captain Charles MacDonald is available in local bookstores.